Conscious Leadership Series
Bringing thought leadership and pragmatic expertise to Hong Kong
The Conscious Leadership Series was launched in 2017 by the founders of Balance Potential.
We believe leadership skills and organisational values must change to reflect a more human-centric, purpose-driven approach.
Only then may we create true cultures of well-being at work and beyond.
2019 Outlook
Business on a Mission: Increasing enterprise value through social impact and purpose-led strategies.
A fallacy today: to have “purpose,” and to create social impact must be antithetical to capitalism, and at the exclusion of profitability.
In the dawning era of Conscious Capitalism, evidence is strong that a clear sense of purpose – and one oriented towards creating true shared value in society – is advantageous to a company’s bottom line.
John Wood, ex-Director of Microsoft’s Greater China region and Founder of Room to Read, is our next featured Conscious Leader.
In his latest book Purpose, Inc., John highlights companies who have used “purpose” to build stronger bonds with customers, win the war for talent, motivate employees and lower attrition rates, increase social media influence, and attract the best investors.
During this event, John will engage in an insightful and pragmatic dialogue with Karen Seymour, former Executive Director at Li & Fung Foundation and newly appointed Chief Purpose Officer at human at work.
Agenda
6:30 – 7:00pm – Networking
7:00 – 8:00pm – Fireside Chat: John Wood and Karen Seymour; Open Q&A
8:00 – 9:00pm – Drinks, canapes & networking
Location: GLG, 9/F, St. Georgie’s Building, 2 Ice House Street, Central
For more event information and how to register.

John Wood | Founder, Room to Read; Author, Purpose, Inc.
John Wood is the founder of Room to Read, an organization that believes World Change Starts with Educated Children.® Room to Read envisions a world in which all children can pursue a quality education that enables them to reach their full potential and contribute to their communities and the world.
At age 35, John left his position as Director of Business Development for Microsoft’s Greater China region to found Room to Read. The business acumen honed there, combined with his passion and an unparalleled track record at changing the world, makes John a unique and inspiring leader and social entrepreneur.
John has been named by Goldman Sachs as one of the world’s 100 Most Intriguing Entrepreneurs, has been a three-time speaker at the Clinton Global Initiative and is a five-time winner of Fast Company Magazine’s Social Capitalist Award.

Karen Seymour | Chief Purpose Officer, human at work
Karen Seymour is the newly appointed Chief Purpose Officer at human at work, helping leaders and their teams activate purpose to create high performance organizations, humans who thrive and a better world. She formerly led the Li & Fung Foundation and community engagement at the Fung Group of companies, spearheading the launch of purpose and mobilizing change makers worldwide.
A movement-maker and collaborator, Karen connects people to big ideas that lead to big impact. She has built a career spanning 25 years based in Hong Kong as an agile and entrepreneurial leader in financial services, wellness, media, the supply chain and philanthropy. Her own purpose journey has been forged through decades of seeing and experiencing social needs, sparking awareness and action, and witnessing the transformative power of purpose when hearts and minds are tapped for good.
Past Events









“The Mind of the Leader” (August 2018) – Leading with Mindfulness, Compassion & Selflessness
Rasmus Hougaard’s newly released book, “The Mind of the Leader,” based on research of more than 35,000 leaders and interviews with 250 C-level executives, concludes that organisations and leaders aren’t meeting employees’ basic needs of finding meaning, purpose, connection, and genuine happiness in their work. The research found that 65% of employees would forego a pay raise to see their leaders fired. Is the world facing a global leadership crisis? And what does it take to be a good leader today?
On August 26, 2018, academic Steven DeKrey from HKUST, corporate leader Farhan Faruqui from ANZ, consultant Sarah Braid from Accenture and expert Rasmus Hougaard from The Potential Project gathered to discuss the topic of leadership in the 21st century.
“For your business to stay relevant, you have to keep innovating and allow your team to be creative, especially when working with millennials. People-centric leadership and personal authenticity are key,” says Judy Xu, General Manager of Balance Potential, a leading Conscious Leadership Consultancy in Hong Kong.
Prepare to be inspired, empowered, and enlightened as we get together with Rasmus and and Hong Kong’s experts on the topic.







